This invention relates to power converter modules, particularly multi-deck power converter modules.
In computer, data communication and telecommunication applications, power converters (e.g., DC--DC converters) are provided in modular form and designed to be mounted on a host board (e.g., motherboard) to provide power for other circuits on the host board. Recently, greater attention has been directed toward reducing the size while maintaining energy efficiency and performance of the power converter so that the overall size of the host board can be reduced or the complexity of the host board can be increased.
One approach for decreasing the size of modular power converters is to use a multi-deck approach in which two or more circuit boards are physically stacked one above the other and electrically interconnected to each other. In a multi-deck arrangement, one board is positioned above another board with the upper board having terminal pins which mount to the lower board. The multi-deck arrangement is particularly advantageous in applications in which the height of the power module can be sacrificed for layout area on the host board. In addition, multi-decked arrangements offer the advantage of allowing electronic components to be mounted to both sides of the upper board of the modular power converter.